A Promise for the Birds
by PeculiarlyOrdinary
Summary: AU In the midst of a threatening war, she wonders if they had made the right decision in making her ANBU. Now after stumbling upon a chain of very troubling discoveries she must make a choice of her own- her loyalty or her heart. SasuXSakuXIta
1. Installment

**A Promise for the Birds **

_Chapter 1: Installment_

**Words:**3,968

**Summary:** [AU With the creeping threat of war always present, she wonders if they had made the right decision in making her ANBU. Now after stumbling upon a chain of very troubling discoveries she must make a choice of her own- her heart or her loyalty. SasuXSakuXIta

**Rating:** T (Language, Violence)

**Pairing:** Sakura x Sasuke // Sakura x Itachi

**Disclaimer:** Saying you own Naruto is like giving your best friend a bunch of deodorant for their birthday. You just don't do it-- unless you're Kishimoto. Not that his friends need deodorant or anything…

**A/N:**

•Italic is used for emphases, thoughts, and flashbacks.

•If you need help with the geography in this story then refer to the world map on the site called leafninja. Take note that I'm replacing the waterfall country (Taki) with water country (Mizu) since I don't know much about Taki xd

•This is my first time writing a story (that wasn't required by any English class, mind you) since 7th grade, or 5 years ago. Critiques and suggestions are _highly_ appreciated, as well as any other comments. I will not be putting up any more chapters until I have several written because for one, I plan to update regularly and finish the story before I put it on hiatus and it ends prematurely, and two, I don't want to post a new chapter and then realize I should've snuck in some clues or taken some out of it after writing newer chapters later on.

•I hope you enjoy the story, even if only a little The beginning may seem a bit slow and/or boring but it will be picking up shortly. Please review so I know I have at least a one-person audience:3

---------------------------------- (**Chapter 1**) -------------------------------------

"So what do you say?" drawled the man lazily, poking at his barely touched salad carelessly. The woman across from him looked out the deli window in deep thought, conflict clear in her expressive eyes. Should she take the risk? Were there really any risks involved? The pay certainly was substantially better than her position as the assistant of Konoha's most powerful individual, despite common misconception, and she could use the money to move into a better apartment in a more convenient section of Konoha. Yet was she really willing to give up her cozy and familiar way of life for this great unknown? Maybe… no. Well, perhaps if she-

The man sighed in irritation at the delay.

"Do you need me to give you my number and you contact me when you finally come to a decision?" he spoke.

The woman began fidgeting with an unused napkin at his prodding, her own salad completely forgotten. Fidgeting with something in her hands was a habit she always had when she was at a loss at what to do or say; one that she had been combating with for as long as she could remember to no avail and that always seemed to get her into a worse situation. The man bit back a snort of annoyance at having been ignored yet again.

She opened her mouth to respond to the impatient stranger but instantly closed it, sinking back into her conflicted train of thought again.

----------**Earlier that day**--------------------------------------

Soft clicking sounds echoed down the off-white limestone hallways of Hi no Kuni's capital building in Konoha, growing steadily louder in succession. A shuffling of paper and quiet breathless pants soon accompanied the clicks, filling the empty void that always seemed to encompass the enormous monolith of a building. A light cough came from somewhere nearby. The clicks were louder now and could be clearly perceived as a woman's footsteps coming from outside.

Tsunade dropped her chin unceremoniously onto her hand, blowing a loose strand of dusty blond hair out of her face and drumming her manicured fingers on the mahogany table like a bored child. Seven other council members sat either haphazardly reclined in their chairs or with backs straight as if they had been tied to wooden posts since birth. All were equally exasperated as the next.

At last the clicks, shuffling, and panting neared the large conference room door and now the fumbling of a doorknob could be heard. The older blonde repressed a groan. At last the door burst open in a flurry of frustration, anxiety, and the overwhelming sense that one just arrived to an important assembly incredibly and inexcusably late. Haruno Sakura stormed into the conference room.

The young woman with an unnatural shade of rose colored hair and ambitious jade eyes all but dumped the stack of papers she'd been carrying onto the table in front of the council members with a huff and removed the large folder from where she held it under her arm. She looked around nervously at each of the council members uncertain with how to begin. What were you supposed to tell a large group of grumpy elders who you kept waiting for 45 minutes? Somehow she thought a "Sorry I was late" didn't cut it after taking in the open glares she was receiving from nearly every one of the council members. She hoped they couldn't see the slight trembling of her hands or the perspiration on her neck.

"I ah… you um… you see, I received some valuable last minute information from the Kaze ANBU scout and investigation ops and… oh, here." Sakura clumsily handed each of the council members a small packet from the leaning stack and quickly straightened out her lavender blouse, strengthening her resolve as she did so.

"It seems that the Mizukage has confirmed his refusal of the peace treaty with Tsuchi no Kuni and continues to uphold his request for Konoha's aid." She pulled out a packet for herself and flipped it to the second page. The council members did the same as they looked from her to the information in front of them.

"This page contains the Mizu and Tsuchi status. No new significant public developments have been made since this council last convened- no new alliances, interference, or any actions whatsoever by any other party. But…" she paused to look at each of the elders closely. "It seems that both Mizu and Tsuchi are well off regarding supplies, technology, and ammunition. It's almost as if this war just started a month ago rather than a year, which brings me to the next point and the reason why I was so late."

Sakura motioned to the folder on the table, the one she had been carrying under her arm moments ago. One of the eldest of the council members with thick-rimmed glasses and a trimmed graying beard, Mitokado Homura, picked up the folder first and opened it, revealing a small pile of photographs held together with a paperclip and some hastily done handwritten notes. There was only one copy of the information in the folder- the original. This was because not only was she running horrendously late by the time her "reliable" source from the Kaze capital made it to her meeting point but because having multiple copies of rather important and classified information was certainly not the wisest choice as she had learned the hard way early on in her position. Sometimes Sakura absolutely loathed doing the Hokage's dirty work and just about all of the paperwork the stubborn older woman refused to do.

Homura passed on the folder and its contents to the other of the council's eldest members, Utatane Koharu, a stern-looking woman with harsh features and betraying wrinkles who looked at the pictures crossly. Sakura couldn't tell if she was angered by what she found or if she was just squinting to make out the images.

"What is the meaning of this, Haruno-san?" Homura spoke up gruffly. The folder was passed on to the rest of the council members- the Godaime Hokage Tsunade, the disorderly Jiraiya, the guarded Orochimaru, the lazy ANBU representative Kakashi, and the two conceited heads of Konoha's great police department and underground defense and investigation organization formally known as ANBU, Uchiha Fugaku and Hyuuga Hiashi.

"It seems that Ame no Kuni's economy is booming and has been ever since the beginning of this war. As you all may know, Ame's economy is dependent on its manufacturing of arms, biological hazards, and other potentially harmful technology and communications. Unfortunately Ame and Hi relations have not had the brightest past relations," Sakura responded. It was common knowledge that affairs with Ame had never been fully patched up after the end of the Ame-Hi war that occurred 28 years ago, even after the Ame leader during the war, the legendary Hanzou, was killed by one of his own fellow commanders for undisclosed reasons. In fact, the paranoia and threats between the two neighboring countries seemed to escalate when no established leader came to assume the assassinated Hanzou's position. The current leadership was still under speculation after nearly three decades.

"The picture you see of a rundown industrial building is one of Ame's many thriving private arms factories and research centers. Kaze has had little success infiltrating any of these but have managed to discover a few interesting activities. There are two pictures of Ame superiors seen meeting with originally unidentified men."

Tsunade glanced at the photos mentioned again. The allegiance of the two Ame men was easily recognizable; they seemed to hold an overwhelming sense of authority and control, pleased with the knowledge that they were pulling all the strings. In a word, they looked arrogant. Each of the two photos showed the same two men meeting with a different unidentified well-dressed individual. Tsunade didn't recognize either of them. Sakura resumed her briefing.

"The unnamed party in the first photo has been identified as a low-cover representative of Tsuchi no Kuni." Several alarmed looks were exchanged; Kakashi's own otherwise indifferent expression broke with the nearly imperceptible widening of his one exposed eye. "And the unnamed in the second is also an under cover representative from Mizu no Kuni." Murmurs of shock, disgust, unease, and a variety of other reactions to the news crowded the room, effectively taking the spotlight off of Sakura, for which she was grateful. The young ex-Kusa woman had only been in Konoha for a little less than a year and she still hadn't gotten used to being stretched so thin over all the research, politics, and work she had to do for her superiors.

A year ago Sakura would have never imagined herself as chief assistant of the great Godaime and she continued to wonder how she had ever managed to secure the position, especially as a foreigner. It was true that Kusa no Kuni and Hi no Kuni were allies and that her father held connections with the Konoha higher-ups, but to be under the command and trust of such powerful and well respected individuals in the great Hi capital of Konoha was beyond her imagination. She knew they acknowledged her exceptional analytical skills and intelligence, but there was always an ever-hanging threat of somehow screwing up both her own ties to the grand nation and the relations between her two home countries. Her overwhelming fear of failure and loss of trust continually spurred Sakura on to do her best at whatever the irritable older men and women at the conference table threw at her.

Tsunade sullenly locked her fingers together in front of her and rested her head on them as if contemplating the best way to go about her final verdict. After a minute of exchange among the council members the busty middle aged woman cleared her throat, effectively silencing everyone as all eyes trained upon her.

"It seems that suspicious activity has been confirmed by Suna. Wartime ANBU assembly and unit redistribution is granted" she nodded to Kakashi, "and planning and precautions will be carried out immediately. Nothing" she paused for emphasis, "is to be discussed outside of this conference hall. Not to reporters, on the phone, or even to family members and friends. Ame is hereby officially declared a threat to Hi security. A prolonged war does nobody any good and there is reasonable fear in our being dragged into the mess. Konoha has declared its isolation from this war for one year now and I intend for it to remain so for reasons already thoroughly and exhaustingly discussed."

At her last words Tsunade glanced at Orochimaru who merely sat back in his seat with his trademark snake-like grin and slithery appearance. Taking her conclusive speech as dismissal all eight council members stood up and bowed their departure before exiting the room to return to their own business. As they filed out slowly Tsunade lingered behind at the door and waited for Sakura to gather her materials before she returned to her office. As Sakura approached her the older woman looked down at her over-worked assistant in genuine concern.

"Sakura, you really should take it easy for a few days. You've hardly had a rest in the past week. Don't assume that I don't notice when you decide to work in your office all night." The young woman just waved off her superior's worry.

"You know I can't do that right now, Tsunade-sama, especially not now that we've received this news. Every hour wasted relaxing is another few days worth of-" Tsunade hastily cut her off.

"That is exactly my point. We can't have exhausted workers doing their jobs inefficiently, more so now that we have a major threat." Tsunade placed a hand on Sakura's shoulder warmly and led her out of the conference room and down the hallway. They continued on in silence as Tsunade mulled something over in her head. After a few moments of thoughtful silence, she spoke again.

"You have done exceptional work for Konoha and for all of Hi no Kuni with your diligence and your intelligence, Sakura," she exclaimed with an obvious intention of some sort. Sakura looked up at Tsunade questioningly, a hint of alarm making its presence.

"Are you- are you giving me leave, Tsunade-sama?" she asked, wide-eyed. She hadn't done something wrong, had she? The Godaime Hokage allowed a small chuckle and playfully punched the girl in the arm, which, in fact, rather hurt considering the older woman was incapable of using any less strength than that which matched her unstable temper.

"Certainly not, Sakura. Not after all you've done for us. However, I have a sort of… promotion that I'd like you to consider. That is why I want you to take a few days off to think about this choice."

"A promotion?" Her worrisome expression changed to one of deep thoughtfulness.

"Hai, but I cannot say anything about it here or right now." Tsunade slowed to a stop and began fishing in the inner pocket of her emerald green coat. She took out a small notebook and a red pen, hastily scratching something onto the paper before tearing it out of its bindings and handing it to Sakura.

"I want you to go to this location for lunch today at midday and wait. My associate will know who you are when he sees you." Sakura's eye twitched at the woman's insinuation. She never liked all the unnecessary attention she attracted with her vibrant hair color and preferred to remain unnoticed and in the background. Nevertheless she readily agreed to her boss' instructions; she never refused her superiors. Besides, a promotion was usually a good thing, wasn't it?

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

The stranger in the deli dropped some money on the table and began to stand up to leave, on the end of his rope with waiting for any sort of response from the strange woman.

"W-wait, just give me one more minute, please," Sakura pleaded. He sighed and sat back down, his chin resting on his hand and looking oddly like a displeased pineapple.

She had to give him an answer soon and she began to panic.

'_What would Ino advise?' _she thought in desperation. Yamanaka Ino and Haruno Sakura were great friends and yet at the same time vicious rivals, finding anything and everything disputable and then wordlessly forgiving one another the next moment. The two girls went way back all the way to childhood in Kusa and even their parents were close friends with one another. To top it all off, Sakura's mother worked as a secretary in the Yamanaka's affluent family-owned fashion and material design corporation, which was responsible for a variety of creative feats ranging from the creation of Kusa's most extravagant haute-couture to top-of-the-line resilient and inexpensive materials.

Sakura supposed that her impulsive friend would be cheering her on and threatening to disown her if she refused this proposal had she been there at the moment. Sakura shook her head, her loose pink locks swishing with the random movement. This was a very important decision in her young life and she shouldn't be giving into peer pressure when dealing with something of such significance.

'_Peer pressure? No one's even telling me to accept the offer…'_ Sakura sighed.

"Alright," she spoke after another minute of indecisiveness. The lazy pineapple man snapped up immediately. It almost seemed as if he had fallen asleep in the past minute or two—or was just watching the clouds slowly glide by in the warm summer air.

"Yes?" he mumbled.

"I accept. I figure I'd be a greater asset to Konoha if I assume this position and that is my supreme goal." '_I hope he doesn't think I'm sugar-coating it_' she inwardly sighed.

The stranger, looking relieved, stood up again and dusted off his coat and pants before stretching out a hand to shake. As she took his larger hand in hers he lackadaisically recited his first formal statement during the entire conversation—or lack thereof.

"Nara Shikamaru, your new superior. Welcome to the ANBU IU."

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

Back in her cramped office in the capital building Sakura dusted off some picture frames lovingly before placing them in a spare box she kept in her personal storage. She didn't like the idea of leaving so soon. The capital building became her home away from home -despite its airy and vacant overtones- and Tsunade had become almost a mother figure for the petite pink-haired woman. She was beginning to experience a throat-wrenching feeling of guilt creep up on her as the realization of her actions started to sink in.

_'Tsunade-sama seemed to want me to accept the position though, didn't she?'_ Her thoughts were interrupted with an authoritative knock at the door, meaning only one thing. Sakura stood up from her spot by the bookshelf and opened the door.

_'Speak of the devil,'_ she thought. Tsunade stood with a grand smile on her face as she walked into the office uninvited and gave Sakura a bone-shattering pat on the back, causing her to wince slightly.

"Congratulations Sakura, I'm proud of you," she beamed. "ANBU is truly an honorable achievement and you made a good choice." Sakura bowed to her ex-boss deeply, uncertain how to respond to her rare moment of flattery. It was then that she heard a brief clearing of the throat from the doorway. She looked to see a somewhat young man with a half-hidden face and unruly gray hair leaning casually against the doorframe. She recognized him as the ANBU representative of Konoha's council, Hatake Kakashi. The two never spoke on anything other than business terms and she hardly knew anything about him except that he had a very laid back manner regarding just about anything in life and had a knack for showing up late to meetings consistently.

'_Although never 45 minutes late,_' she thought with chagrin. Kakashi straightened up and walked over to Sakura to shake hands in greeting.

"I thought I'd formally introduce myself as your new colleague. Welcome to the ranks," he said lightly. His face, being almost entirely hidden behind a dark blue cloth mask, didn't betray any sign of emotion or warmth as he spoke to her except the slight crinkling of his exposed gray eye. Sakura liked to think that meant he was smiling under that fabric obstruction.

"Thank you," she smiled, hoping she seemed at least a little confident as she did so. First impressions were everything when it came to the higher-ups and she didn't want to screw anything up before she even began her first day. Kakashi reached and removed a small card from a pocket on his olive-green ANBU vest and handed it to Sakura.

"Your first day begins tomorrow. Meet in the lobby of the central Konoha Police Department at 6 o'clock. Nara-san will be waiting for you there. You two have already met if I heard correctly. If you have any questions my work number is on that card. I will see you tomorrow, Haruno-san." With that the aloof ANBU gave a short bow in farewell and turned on his heels to leave. As he was about to exit Tsunade called out to him.

"_Kakashi!_" He stopped in his tracks but did not turn around. Sakura almost feared that he would be in for it for disrespecting the Hokage no matter how arbitrary the offence, but then she reminded herself that this was Tsunade she was talking about. The woman would be serving sake instead of coffee or water during the conferences and installed slot machines in the break room had she had everything go her way. Sometimes Sakura was thankful for the presence of the uptight and domineering Homura and Koharu in the city council. Only sometimes.

"I promised Sakura that she would receive time off for a few days. She's been overworking and earned a well deserved break. Is it absolutely necessary that she begin work instantly?" She questioned sternly, arms crossed. Kakashi stuffed his hands in his pockets and shrugged lightheartedly as he turned his head around to face the Hokage and crinkled his eye.

"I'm afraid it is, Hokage-sama. Uchiha-san requested immediate unit redistribution." Tsunade frowned but did not push the question as this was not within her sphere of authority. Kakashi took the opportunity to sneak away.

"I'll be fine, Tsunade-sama," Sakura smiled warmly as she walked towards Tsunade. "Though, I'll definitely be missing working here. I was just beginning to get used to it." She scratched at the back of her head uncertainly. Tsunade turned again to face the young woman and placed a hand on her head motherly.

"Don't worry; you'll still be working for me indirectly in your new arrangement. You are going to be the Hokage's personal ANBU representative and will report to me anything of importance that ANBU deems necessary to reveal and vice versa," she instructed. Sakura nodded dutifully and turned back to resume her packing. Fortunately there was not much left to pack. In her earlier years, Sakura prided herself on being a complete neat-freak but it seemed that a few things had changed over the years as she remembered the leaning towers of unsorted paperwork and documents strewn about the place—much of the papers weren't even her duty to complete, and were merely the results of Tsunade's figuring she could get away with less paperwork by stashing it in her assistant's room.

'_And yet she frets about me over-working,' _Sakura thought indignantly.

After a few more minutes of conversing with Tsunade, the older woman left to make it to another council meeting. It wasn't often that that council would congregate more than once every three to ten days but now was a critical time for Konoha to respond to any hint of a threat before it became a reality. Sakura felt almost disappointed that she was no longer permitted to be a part of these meetings but she supposed now that she was ANBU she'd be hearing a lot more private information than she may even wish to hear.

'_I can't wait to see how Ino will react to the news.' _Surely the gossip-savvy blonde would be beside herself with excitement for her childhood friend. Sakura could already imagine the conversation carrying on long into the night about how she might have to kill some 'bad guys' and get her hands dirty or work as a secret agent and manually terminate a bomb to save her life. Sakura chuckled quietly to herself as she thought of her friend; Ino always knew how to brighten any situation even when she wasn't present.

As Sakura finally finished packing her personal belongings into two compact boxes and placed them next to her office door she took a moment to relax and look out of her small window. She had been so engrossed in her work after Tsunade left her that she hadn't even noticed the sun setting. The sun was now completely out of sight and the streets three stories below were clearly illuminated by the intense lamp bulbs stretching down the empty street and away from view. A few government officials were exiting the building below her to go home to their families after a long day of work. She recognized a couple, one being Uchiha Fugaku who entered a black car with another occupant whom she could not clearly see that had been waiting outside the front of the capital building; the council meeting must have been over by now.

Deciding it was at last time to gather her things and leave, Sakura turned off her office lights for the final time with a decisive flick of the switch and gave a quick glance at her room in almost mournful parting before shutting the door behind her.

------------**Chapter End**-----------------------------------------

**Next Chapter:**

"_We're here," Shikamaru said. He stopped the car outside the garage and the two stepped out. _

"_It's in there?" Sakura asked, pointing in the opposite direction. Shikamaru shrugged slightly, putting his hands into his pockets. _

"_Something like that." _

**Reviews let me know that someone out there took the time to read this, so don't be afraid :3**

**Translations:**

•Hi no Kuni – Fire Country // Capital: Konoha - Leaf

•Kusa no Kuni – Grass Country // Capital: Kusa - Grass

•Mizu no Kuni – Water Country // Capital: Kiri - Mist

•Ame no Kuni – Rain Country // Capital: None

•Tsuchi no Kuni – Earth Country // Capital: Iwa - Rock

(3/7): I'm already almost done with chapter 3 by now but I don't want to put it all up at once and then have a humongous gap in update times, so I'll be doing my best to keep a few chapters ahead of those I do put up. It's now spring break so hopefully my writing inspiration returns and I can make the most of my free time :D


	2. Facility

**A Promise for the Birds **

_Chapter 2: Facility_

**Words:**7,067

**Rating:**T (Language, Violence)

**Pairing:**Sakura x Sasuke // Sakura x Itachi

**Disclaimer:**Are disclaimers really necessary on a place called I'm putting this one out so soon after the first chapter for unknown reasons ;; Chapter 3 is nearly finished, but I'm having trouble making myself write the part I'm at simply because I really want to write the later chapters much more o3o; In due time I suppose…

---------------------------------- (**Chapter 2**) -------------------------------------

The rising sun's rays penetrated Sakura's blinds sharply and she shielded her eyes with her arm as an irritated groan escaped her mouth. Not more than ten seconds later her alarm began to buzz rudely, signaling the beginning of her first day as an ANBU officer.

The petite woman with spring flower-colored hair angrily switched off her alarm and rose out of bed. She didn't allow much time for herself to get ready in the morning thinking that the extra sleep would help her function better on her first day. It had worked out that Ino never answered her phone the night before so she was able to go to bed at a decent hour. Though sleeping in later seemed like a good idea at the time, Sakura was beginning to have doubts as she ran a mental estimate of the time it would take her to complete her daily morning ritual. Concluding with a "sooner the better," she began to get ready.

It was a 5:30 by the time she was good to go. Sakura grabbed her keys and work bag and put on a long but light jacket over her blouse and pants before exiting her tiny downtown apartment room. On the way out she exchanged a few greetings with familiar faces as she did every other morning before work.

_'Just another day,' _she thought, comfortingly. _'Relax.'_ She exhaled strongly to ready herself and left the building. The streets were rather busy for such an early hour but as was to be expected from a city as large as Konoha. So were the incessant honks and angered shouting that sounded from all around.

Sakura began her trek to the Central Konoha Police Department as Kakashi had instructed her the day before. It was conveniently only a few blocks away from her apartment and she would be there early, most-likely. She figured it would be better than being late.

The young ANBU-to-be had never stepped foot in or near the police department but it was immediately apparent when she was nearing it.

The building was the second tallest in all of Konoha, extending far above what could be seen with the bare eye if one were to stand directly next to its enormous base. Its walls were entirely steel frame and a turquoise-green glass, each window panel shining brightly and catching the morning sun as if painstakingly polished every night. She wouldn't be surprised if they really were, judging from the sound of money Sakura could swear she heard pouring out the cracks between windows. Near the top the structure seemed to fragment randomly yet tastefully and began to narrow until the tip, a feature that graced the department with the title of the turquoise blade of Konoha.

At last she reached the elaborate glass doors of the department lobby. As the woman entered she wasn't surprised to experience the overwhelming sense of inferiority that the room seemed to cast upon its occupants. The lobby was vast, with a contrast of sleek blacks and pristine whites. Modern art was scattered around the walls and the floor as centerpieces in what Sakura thought was most-likely an "artsy" arrangement. Money and power seemed to swim all around her. To Sakura, it was all foreign.

'_Well, they sure did their research on evoking insignificance in humans,'_she thought, grimly.

Looking around she noticed only two other occupants in the room. One was a well-dressed woman behind a tall desk who seemed to ignore Sakura entirely. The second occupant, she was somewhat surprised to note, was familiar. Striding over to the figure in the far end of the room that was currently lounging on a rather stiff-looking piece of furniture that could not even be considered a sofa, Sakura tried to catch his attention.

"Good morning, Nara-san," she exclaimed sincerely. Said man craned his head in Sakura's direction, bored expression forever exhibited on his face. He stood up in greeting.

"I didn't keep you waiting long, did I?" He shrugged a response as if to dismiss her tardiness. Feeling slightly put off, Sakura added, "Well, I was a little early actually…"

"Don't worry about it, we should get going," he mumbled, waving her justification off with a wave of his hand. This annoyed Sakura further since she really hadn't done anything wrong but she decided it wasn't anything to get angry over so she let it go and followed the slouching officer to the lobby's enormous main door.

"Why are we leaving this way?" she asked.

"Because this is the Konoha _police_ department. ANBU is a confidential branch of defense and interrogation meaning its base has to be confidential as well." He sounded irritated as if he were having to explain everything to a child. Sakura could feel her blood pressure rising; she'd have to keep that in check. Unfortunately, over the moderate period of time spent under the influence of Tsunade's violent tantrums and even being a victim of them from time to time, she was beginning to become even more like the older woman than she would hope to.

'_This man has no manners at all. Honestly…' _The man with the pineapple shaped ponytail led Sakura to a sleek-looking silver car with heavily tinted windows parked on the side of the street clearly labeled as a no parking zone. Shikamaru opened the passenger door for Sakura before going around to the other side to enter the driver's door himself.

The drive was mostly in silence, with Sakura putting in a few comments or questions mostly about nothing and Shikamaru answering curtly but not impolitely; it seemed he became much more relaxed after leaving the bustling downtown Konoha. It had been about twenty minutes when Sakura began to be more curious as to where they could have possibly been heading. By now the towering glass giants and smoggy crowds of automobiles and commuters were replaced by quaint suburban homes and parents and children on their way to work or school. Seeming to sense Sakura's inquisitiveness, Shikamaru spoke up.

"We're roughly ten minutes away now. The HQ is in the general Kumo Lake area but we are never to say exactly where it is. I hope you understand why," he murmured lazily. Sakura made a sound in agreement. She could've sworn she heard him next say something about the "troublesome commute" under his breath but didn't bother confirming.

It was ten minutes later that they approached a fork in the empty forest-shrouded streets, the left route exhibiting a sign signaling the direction of Kumo Lake. They turned onto this route and soon entered a small clearing near an old unused sheriff's building and a small barn-turned-garage beyond it.

"We're here," Shikamaru said. He stopped the car outside the garage and the two stepped out.

"It's in there?" Sakura asked, pointing in the direction of the sheriff's building. Shikamaru shrugged slightly, putting his hands into his pockets.

"Something like that."

Sakura followed him into the building. Everything was silent in the area other than the gentle breeze blowing through the forest and the chirping of the local birds. Inside the building it was lightly furnished, with two small offices, a restroom, and an open area most likely once used as a waiting or display room. One of the offices was closed and locked. Shikamaru began walking towards the locked door, pulling out a set of keys from his pocket as he did so and casually opened it. Looking inside, Sakura didn't see anything out of place or of significance. Behind the office door was another that looked like it opened into the restroom.

Shikamaru shut and locked the door behind him and turned to see Sakura with a skeptical look on her face.

"Don't worry, it's not really a bathroom," he assured her. "The outer door isn't even a door, actually." Shikamaru opened the "restroom" door uneventfully, revealing a lengthy set of stairs leading down underground. He flicked on a light switch that uninvitingly illuminated the passage, exposing yet another door several yards down. Sakura was sure she could hear some faint form of activity beyond the passage and was curious as to what she would find on the other side.

It wasn't more than a minute before she was at the door's threshold with Shikamaru at her side, her face brightened by anticipation and the bright yellow luminescent above the entrance.

"You gonna enter?" asked the impatient ANBU officer. Not wanting to appear intimidated or frightened Sakura outstretched a shaky hand to turn the aged handle. However, before she even got a hold of it, the handle began to move on its own accord and the door swung open. Completely baffled by the abrupt and unexpected movement, Sakura jumped back with an inaudible gasp and stared at the figure in the doorway.

"Oh! You're already here, pineapple man? You're early!" the figure exclaimed. The sudden intruder, Sakura noted, hardly looked like an adult with his big goofy grin and disorderly golden hair. He was also dressed very casually and looked like he was on his way out for a movie or a trip to the mall rather than a member of Konoha's elite forces out on business. In that moment he seemed to notice Sakura, who was now standing slightly behind Shikamaru.

"You must be one of the rookies." He kept up his fox-like smile and grabbed Sakura's hand for a rather violent handshake. "Uzumaki Naruto," he said, referring to himself. Sakura tried her best to smile but was still recovering from the sudden explosion of energy that seemed to radiate off the lively man.

"Haruno Sakura," she replied quietly.

"I didn't expect pineapple man to reel such a looker into the ranks," he beamed. Naruto was beside himself with delight while Sakura just blushed. Usually she only received attention because of her absurd hair color. Shikamaru sighed with disgust and impatience, about to say something before being rudely cut off.

"Hey, Tenten and Neji aren't here yet?" Naruto asked, craning his head to look over Shikamaru and Sakura. Shikamaru shook his head.

"They weren't following us today. They're probably back here already." Sakura looked at Shikamaru questioningly.

"Following us?" she asked. Naruto interrupted Shikamaru before he could speak again.

"Ah, we were supposed to have two ANBU follow you this morning to make sure you weren't tracked," he said, assuming an air of importance. "We also had ANBU monitor your communications after arriving home yesterday so no information would be disclosed to 'unnecessary parties'." Shikamaru smashed a palm to his forehead in frustration. Sometimes Naruto was a little too open with others.

"_Excuse me?_" Sakura's fists clenched. Surely this was a violation of employee's rights or something. "I wasn't even informed of this?" Her tone was quickly becoming deadly. So was this why she couldn't reach Ino? Shikamaru tried to amend the situation as Naruto inched backwards slowly.

"It was only temporary. We didn't believe there to be cause for alarm so we were hoping to keep it under wraps just to keep you and this organization's privacy secure." Sakura was somewhat appeased by this. It was understandable after all, she supposed.

"Yup! Hey, do you want me to show you around, Sakura-chan? You don't mind if I call you that, right?" Naruto regained his natural confidence and was bursting with energy again.

"Not really," she replied, uncertain. Just as Naruto grabbed her arm to lead her down the brightly lit hallway that lay behind the door, Shikamaru spoke up.

"Hold on a minute, Naruto. Briefing is in a few minutes. Do this later, will you?" At the mention of official matters Naruto seemed to become more serious and mature. He nodded.

"This way then," he gestured to the end of the hall, to where the three at last took off. Sakura could see the final set of doors beyond, which were large and made of a heavy-duty material that didn't seem to leave a single crack between it and the wall around it. To the side was a small machine with keys labeled numerically where Naruto quickly punched in a code from memory. There was a click and Shikamaru reached to open one of the heavy doors and moved it with some effort. Sakura could only stand in complete shock.

Beyond the door was a short but wide stretch of stone steps. Looking out ahead of that was what seemed like a mix between a rather large airport and a small indoor city. Businessmen and women traversed the paved walkways past small convenience stores, restaurants, and coffee shops that were either short and flat-roofed or embedded into the fortified walls of the headquarters. In the distance were stacks of office buildings and apartments built much like the stores on the other end and she could even see a small park with well-trimmed grass and a few tiny trees. There was a handful of small electrical transport carts and bicycles but no other vehicles. The ceiling was enormous and lit with white lights that mimicked natural sunlight.

"Great, isn't it, Sakura-chan?" the goofy man asked. Sakura recovered enough to ask a question.

"Why- why all this? I had no idea ANBU was so large," she exclaimed. Naruto thought about his answer but this time Shikamaru beat him to it.

"Most of the police department and military officials have lived and worked here at one point. It's not just for ANBU. Workers can live here and just walk down the street to go to work and not have things to worry about that you normally would when working among civilians. Supplies are always restocked and emergency stores are always kept, the few exits are on watch 24/7, communications inside and out are carefully monitored, and everything you need is just around the corner, literally," he instructed knowledgably while checking off points on his fingers.

"…Amazing," she said, eyes wide in astonishment.

"Sure is!" Naruto grinned again. "Come on, let's get to the briefing before Kakashi has our asses. He may be late all the time but that doesn't mean he lets us do it too," he frowned.

Naruto continued down the steps and the others followed with a fast pace to keep up with the energetic blue-eyed boy of an ANBU officer. As they traveled down the narrow paved street they passed throngs of HQ inhabitants, most of whom ignored the three. Sakura couldn't help but notice how ordinary they all looked; the normalcy of the bizarre underground town somehow threw her off her mental balance. She also took note of the lack of children in the area. Apparently workers did not bring their families here.

The three ANBU reached one of the closer office buildings located near the center of the headquarters and entered it. There was nothing extravagant about it like there was with the police department downtown, but it still had that air of importance that seemed to be a permanent feature of all things municipal in Konoha. They took the elevator to the sixth floor and moved down a winding hallway in comfortable silence. Even Naruto was now all-business.

Sakura followed the other two into a conference room furnished with a single large circular wooden table in the center and a number of seats around it, many of which were already occupied. Sakura could already sense her pulse quickening slightly, beginning to feel nervous being under open scrutiny of so many pairs of eyes that all seemed to immediately fixate on her as she entered. Shikamaru and Naruto had already taken a seat and Sakura hurried to fill the nearest vacant one next to Shikamaru.

"Is this everyone?" Shikamaru spoke up as he looked around.

"All except Kakashi," someone replied. Shikamaru nodded.

"What time did you tell him?" someone else asked.

"Six." It was currently 6:30, Sakura observed when she looked at the clock on the wall behind her.

"Any minute now, then." Sakura looked at the last speaker. He looked strikingly like Hyuuga Hiashi with his blank pastel-colored eyes, stern mouth forever set into a frown, and long black hair tied back in a low ponytail; she realized that this must be his well-respected nephew that she heard of every now and then in the capital. She didn't know his name. Before Sakura had the chance to investigate every one of the other faces of the people at the table, the door behind her opened to reveal the familiar face of Hatake Kakashi.

"Yo." His eye crinkled and he raised a hand in greeting. There were several mumbles and whispers of good mornings. "I believe everyone is here?" He didn't bother to wait for a response and carried on while shutting the door.

"As you all know by now, a section of ANBU is undergoing temporary war-time unit redistribution to accommodate a low-profile investigation and disarmament of Ame. You are all here for team and mission reassignment. Your current missions, if you had any, have already been cleared and assigned to other officers. Remember that these changes are only temporary and you will be back with your old teams at the termination of this unit's final mission." Kakashi paused and walked further into the room towards the vacant chair a few seats away from Sakura but did not sit down. He waved to the pink-haired ANBU silently and smiled—she thought—and she shyly waved back, unsure how to react. He did the same to a timid young woman off to the other side, whom also closely resembled Hiashi, but only in physical appearance- by character she seemed to be a polar opposite of the arrogant aristocrat and his nephew.

"As you all may have also noticed, we have two new members amongst us. I expect you to teach them everything you know and treat them respectably as fellow officers and coworkers." Kakashi leaned over, placing his hands and weight on the back of the chair that he stood behind before continuing.

"This is going to sound rather… childish, but I propose that we all introduce ourselves briefly so that we can get a start on getting to know one another. We will be working closely for an extended period of time so this will be highly beneficial to the success of the mission," he supplied. Naruto pouted, seeming to disapprove of the elementary exercise but surprisingly said nothing.

"I will begin," spoke the gruff voice from earlier. It was the man she recognized as Hiashi's nephew. "Hyuuga Neji," he stated prominently. Next to him was a young brunette with hair tucked into two neat buns at the side of her head.

"Tenten."

"Inuzuka Kiba and Akamaru." A man with unruly chocolate-colored hair who patted the head of an enormous white dog at his side that Sakura had not noticed earlier.

"Aburame Shino." A dark figure with impenetrable shades and a long trench coat with the hood hung mysteriously over his head.

"H- Hyuuga Hinata." The young woman to whom Kakashi had also waved to earlier.

"Morino Ibiki." A brusque man who appeared to be in his forties and riddled with battle scars, exuding experience.

"Mitarashi Anko." A woman with dark violet hair pulled up into a messy bun and a smile like the Cheshire Cat.

"Rock Lee." An enthusiastic young man with a shiny bowl-cut and thick eyebrows who beamed in Sakura's direction.

"Uzumaki Naruto." He grinned.

"Nara Shikamaru." He yawned.

"Haruno Sakura." She tried to keep her voice steady as eyes turned to her once again for a brief moment.

"Uchiha Sasuke." Sakura was surprised she didn't recognize the youngest son of Uchiha Fugaku. He'd been by the capital building a few times before and had once filled in for his father in an uneventful but mandatory council meeting while he was away on business. At the moment his utter boredom seemed to outshine Shikamaru's by a long shot.

"Well done," Kakashi exclaimed. "Now, as this division is intended for investigation and disarmament regarding the Ame threat, it will be further divided into two sub-sections, the investigation unit and the disarming unit, or IU and DU as some of you have heard. Each team will be composed of two DU and one IU for the preliminary stage, which consists of information retrieval and analysis as well as planning for Phase I. Any questions so far?" None.

"The teams will be as thus, with each IU named first: Team 1 is Shikamaru, Neji, Tenten; Team 2: Anko, Lee, Hinata; Team 3: Ibiki, Kiba, Shino; and Team 4: Sakura, Naruto, Sasuke. I am removing myself as head of this division and will be conducting investigation in a one man team. Sasuke is named new head of the Ame division as well as the DU unit with Neji as co-head; Shikamaru is head of the IU unit. Ibiki and Anko will remain in charge of interrogative operations." Everyone agreed.

"You will be splitting into your groups and begin work immediately at the conclusion of a three day prep session for everyone, including training for our new recruits. Our first mission involves minor searching and inspection of Ame affairs, leadership, et cetera. Temporary base is set up in the Ame-Hi border city's Hi Police Force branch and the IU will be stationed there for the duration of the initial stage. DU will use whatever methods necessary to enter Ame and gather information. IU will initiate Phase I planning and information analysis as it comes in. Estimated duration time is two to three weeks. Understood?" Kakashi's lone eye trailed around the room lethargically.

Sakura was a little surprised at Kakashi's minor speech. She knew what to expect from her new position but at the same time… she didn't. She knew next to nothing about actual information analysis and although she had a knack for it, she had absolutely no experience in planning and the assessment of plans. She doubted she could learn everything in just the three days given for training.

Sakura looked over to Hinata to see how she was faring with the news. She looked a little pale but otherwise accepting; of course, with her whole family being involved with ANBU affairs it was most probable that she knew what was in store for her. Sakura was surprised to realize that Hinata was the daughter of ANBU's co-head was just now entering the forces. She guessed Hinata was around her own age; in fact, everyone there except Anko, Ibiki, and Kakashi appeared to be rather young to be in such remarkable positions.

Kakashi spotted the restlessness of the two new female rookies and addressed them directly.

"We'll be taking things easy in the beginning, of course," he laughed light-heartedly. We'll give you two plenty of time to catch up. We have full faith in you." Their tension was pacified, even if only a little.

"Alright then. Training will begin in two hours. Have some breakfast and get to know your team a little; we meet in the facility. Dismissed." The facility, Sakura later learned from Naruto, was an on base training center at the HQ complete with indoor gyms, shooting range, instructors, and library. Even a seasoned officer benefited and learned something new from taking a course there, he had said.

Everyone at the table stood up and followed Kakashi out of the meeting room, already gathered into their own groups and deciding where to go for the next two hours; all except Naruto and Sasuke, who lingered behind. Sakura approached them and observed that they were already deep into conversation with one another, one being loud and animated and the other emotionless and cold, hands stuffed into his pockets as if sulking. She moved closer so she could hear what they were talking about.

"-always go there. Are you incapable of eating _anything_ else?" the arrogant Uchiha bit out, his shadowed black eyes glaring deeply into Naruto's child-like sky-colored orbs. Naruto crossed his arms and returned the glare with a hint of childish rivalry.

"At least their food has _flavor_. The stuff you always make us eat is crap." He wrinkled his nose in memory of the last time he went anywhere with the raven-haired young man. "Besides, Sakura-chan is new here and she hasn't even had the chance to try it." He gestured to her direction, seeming almost pitying. Sasuke glanced at her, realizing that they weren't the only ones who remained behind. He didn't acknowledge his new female teammate and turned back to his rival after momentarily scrutinizing her.

"Don't you think that she's better off not being dragged to Ichiraku all the time since day one?" Naruto shrugged. Sakura decided she had enough of being talked about as if she weren't currently next to them and supplied her opinion on the matter.

"Naruto did say he would show me around the base a little after the meeting was over. I don't mind going where he wants to eat." It was Sasuke's turn to shrug, continuing his façade of indifference.

"It's your funeral, then. But no sane person eats ramen for breakfast." Sakura blanched. Ichiraku was a ramen shop? She had to agree with Sasuke on this: her stomach certainly wouldn't take such a heavy meal so early and just before vigorous training, to top it all off. Yet she had given Naruto her word and that was always something she stuck by. Besides, the young blonde was already beginning to grow on her and she felt she owed him something for his friendliness. Not to mention he reminded her of her talkative childhood friend in Kusa. Sakura sighed and moved in between her two teammates and towards the door.

"Let's get started then, shall we?" she smiled encouragingly, more for herself than for them.

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It had been one hour since Team 4 left the central office to explore the headquarters. Sasuke remained behind, shuffling his feet and slouching with his hands in his pockets again, while Naruto, bubbling over with life, babbled fervently about various things to Sakura who nodded nonchalantly. She had long since tuned him out and was beginning to feel her stomach's wrath from lack of food the night before and that morning. A low growl sounded from it and Naruto's sensitive ears didn't miss a thing.

"Ah, Sakura-chan you're feeling hungry, aren't you? Why didn't you say so? Ichiraku's just on the other side of this block, let's go. You're going to love it, Sakura-chan! You see, it's the best in all of Konoha-" his one-sided conversation continued and Sakura tuned him out again but didn't refuse his suggestion. The three slowly made it to a small ramen stand that looked like it had just been opened for the day. A rotund older man with rosy cheeks and a brown-haired girl who looked a few years younger than Sakura were busy with their morning shop preparations. The pair looked up to see Naruto and company and the older man beamed at him upon recognition.

"Look who we have here!" he exclaimed joyfully. "So early too." Naruto grinned and pointed to his companions.

"We've got training today and need to eat something sustaining, Teuchi-jiji." Teuchi smiled in response while the young woman, his daughter Ayame, took their orders. After they had received their food and finished ingesting it Naruto pushed aside his six empty bowls and sighed in satisfaction.

"That wasn't so bad, ne, teme?" Naruto questioned, jokingly. He slapped Sasuke on the back as he was taking the last bite of chicken and spicy noodles, causing the silent Uchiha to cough suddenly.

"Dobe," he muttered after taking a quick drink of water from his glass. _'I think I'm going to be sick' _was his unvoiced answer—he had too much pride to be saying it out loud. Sakura wasn't so sure she'd be feeling too well later on, herself, but also didn't mention anything as she did not want to hurt Naruto's feelings somehow.

Eventually, Sakura and Sasuke convinced Naruto to pay for them—or Sasuke demanded he pay for making him come there and Sakura didn't dare oppose after receiving a reproachful glare—and they left in the direction of the facility.

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The facility looked like a large stadium, standing 3 floors high with enormous glass windows on all four walls of the rectangular building. When Team 4 arrived in the main entrance they found the three other teams waiting in the large vaulted lobby area and Sakura was surprised yet again to see another familiar person.

Jiraiya waved in their general direction enthusiastically.

"Well what do you know?" the aging man roared joyfully, the red tattooed lines on his slowly wrinkling face scrunching as he smiled. "I've been wondering where the old woman's little pet ran off to. Fancy seeing you here, Sakura." Mentioned woman smiled politely and waved.

"Ero-sennin!" Naruto cried out. Sakura was uncertain if he was upset at being ignored or just extremely happy to see the white-haired man. Naruto approached Jiraiya who gave the young man a pat on the back.

"It's been a while, hasn't it, Naruto?" he chuckled. Naruto turned to a questioning Sakura and a disinterested Sasuke.

"Ero-sennin here is one of the instructors in the facility. He teaches all sorts of cool stuff, like special fighting moves and scouting techniques. He's the ANBU espionage specialist," he informed, proudly. Jiraiya messed with Naruto's hair in a fatherly way.

"This kid speaks the truth," he said. "And that is exactly what you all will be working with today. Since we have two rookies I'll be starting from the beginning—" there were several groans. Jiraiya continued.

"But I will pick up the pace rather quickly. Kakashi picked up some sharp ones, I hear." He winked at Sakura, who felt rather unsettled by this. Jiraiya was known around the capital building for being quite the pervert even in his old age, after all.

"When we get to combat training, however, you will be enhancing your advanced techniques. The little ones will be starting from step one while you do this." There were several quiet sniggers at Jiraiya's last phrase and Hinata began to fidget nervously, poking her two index fingers together. The old man turned and signaled the rest to follow him down into one of the many hallways that branched out of the main lobby. Sakura turned to Sasuke who was currently walking in step with her when she heard him begin to speak.

"What Jiraiya meant was that you'll be doing combat training under Gai." Sasuke spoke as if the name was supposed to mean something to her. He continued, seeming to be uncharacteristically helpful.

"He is known for his rigorous physical endurance programs that exhaust even the most experienced ANBU and he doesn't take it easy on the rookies either. In fact, he's even tougher on the younger trainees. It's something about '_youthfulness_'," he stated with disgust. Sakura looked at him strangely.

"Th-thanks for telling me," she stuttered, still surprised that he even acknowledged her, let alone aided her. Sasuke just grunted in response, neither annoyed nor pleased.

"You should ask to get out of endurance training—IUs don't have to work directly on the field anyhow. Someone like you won't be able to handle it." He spoke as if stating the most obvious fact in the world. It took Sakura a moment to realize what he was insinuating before she reacted. And react she did.

Ahead of the group where Naruto was walking with Jiraiya and was catching up with the older man on recent developments and personal events, the two heard a formidable cry followed by a powerful crash and splintering of wood. They immediately turned in the direction of the disturbance to see a rare site.

The petite pink-haired woman was panting, fist still embedded an inch into the interior wood wall. The wood around her lodged appendage was cracked and the paint was chipping off. What made the scene spectacular was that Sasuke actually looked vaguely alarmed, having dodged his teammate less than a second before the impact would have connected with his cheek bone. Jiraiya chuckled again.

"Save that energy for the real training, Pinkie. You're going to need it." Sakura ignored him and fixed her glare on Sasuke, who had by now recollected himself and turned around with a 'hn' to retreat to the avid onlookers. Sakura called out after him.

"I am _not_weak," she articulated through clenched teeth. She cradled her raw knuckle to herself, which was now beginning to sting something fierce, and followed the rest of the group that had already lost interest in the violent emotional explosion and continued after Jiraiya. At the back of the group Sasuke turned his head slightly to look at Sakura out of the corner of his eye, face an unreadable mask again.

"Don't be so annoying."

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Sakura spent the rest of the morning and most of midday desperately attempting to absorb and retain every piece of information Jiraiya provided on basic ANBU routine and protocol, which included everything from handling communication devices to what to do when "the shit hit the fan," as he so bluntly put it. She was certain she only remembered half of it, if even that.

All four teams were then allocated a 45 minute break in which a bland mystery meal that reminded Sakura all too well of poor airline food (a redundant phrase, she thought) was distributed. Sakura sat with Naruto and Shikamaru and as his two teammates, where the conversation was light. She learned that Shikamaru and Tenten were moderately new to ANBU and that Shikamaru was recruited for his brain and Tenten was taken in due to her uncanny marksmanship and experienced hand with any form of weapon. She also discovered that Neji and Naruto had been involved in some field of Konoha defense since an early age, one because he was the nephew of the ANBU co-head and the other because was taken under the wing of the legendary Jiraiya as an orphan. She didn't get any further details about this from Naruto, deciding that it'd seem too intrusive to ask.

As all this was going on, Sakura couldn't help but notice that her frigid teammate was sitting alone at the far end of the cafeteria with his hands laced and chin firmly planted upon them. She spoke up after Naruto finished up his exciting tale of the time he had ran out of ramen in the house and Ichiraku was closed for a week-long holiday.

"He's not mad at me, is he?" Sakura asked worriedly. Naruto looked confused for a moment before realizing who she was referring to.

"The ice queen? He always sulks like that, don't worry Sakura-chan." She didn't look too convinced.

"Yeah, Sakura. ANBU is full of reclusive characters like him. Take Neji here for example." Tenten gestured to the frowning man beside her, who merely gave her a fierce look but did not protest. Sakura laughed.

The break ended without much event and all four teams exited the cafeteria to rejoin with Jiraiya for "combat conditioning." On the way back towards one of the gyms, the group was interrupted by a shout from behind them.

"Hyuuga! Haruno! This way!" Everyone turned to identify the speaker. Sakura wanted to cringe. Behind them was an man who strikingly resembled the ambitious Rock Lee-- bowl cut, thick eyebrows, and all. He wore a tight green jump suit and appeared to be sweating and breathing somewhat heavily as if from strenuous exercise. Sakura and Hinata looked at one another curiously.

"Youth does not wait for anybody!" he cried passionately. "Let us begin our endurance training and test the flames of your adolescence. Come!" He hurried off in the opposite direction. Sakura felt a hand on her shoulder and jumped in shock at the contact, turning to look at Naruto's solemn face. He gave her a thumbs up and a smile that seemed to lack his usual confidence before turning around to catch up to the others. Hinata and Sakura were obliged to meekly follow the eccentric green man, anxiety clear on their faces.

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The pain was nothing like she ever experienced before; her lungs ached as if compressed to the size of a golf ball and her legs quivered as if she were taking her first few steps in life. Pain rushed through every part of her body, reaching portions that she was sure even her blood did not. She could not catch her breath, even after over five minutes of resting, palms cemented onto knees with back hunched over and head hanging low.

Haruno Sakura was out of shape—at least according to ANBU standards. She looked over to her side to find the young Hyuuga in a similar condition. Beads of perspiration trickled down her pale neck and forehead. However, even Hinata had managed to keep up with the endless exercise orders the instructor had given out. The green-suited man, whose name Sakura confirmed to be Maito Gai, stood proudly before the rookies. He did not seem at all dismayed at the poor performance of either woman and rambled on about youthfulness and physical prime, as Sasuke had said he would, while they were far too exhausted to pay attention.

"Alright then. Next we will be learning the basics of fighting," he began, dusting off his hands. Sakura remained in her stationary breathless position, hoping he'd get the message that he was absolutely insane and that she was about to die from fatigue to no avail.

"Now, do as I do as we accomplish this task together!" He took a ready stance and waited for the other two to mimic him. After about a minute of attempting to communicate the futility of Gai-sensei's objective, both gave up and struggled to comply.

"Keep your feet apart and arms up. Don't lock your knees like that- good! Very good. Remember, the most important thing to keep in mind when in combat is that self-defense is priority. If you are captured by the enemy they can pry viable information from you and the mission- and even confidential items- can be at stake. If you are killed, you are no longer useful and your team may even be in jeopardy. A mission cannot be completely successful if not all of those who are assigned it return in one piece."

Sakura dazedly gathered the information as her muscles trembled from remaining in the stance for so long, but all she could pick up was fragments of dialogue about team jeopardy and mission pieces.

"-runo. You are not looking lively. Do you need some water? Haruno?" Sakura snapped to attention, realizing Gai had been addressing her while Hinata glanced at her worriedly. Sakura shook her head. She wasn't sure if it was an affirmative or a negative, but either way Gai seemed to comprehend it.

"I think you two have done enough for today then." He flashed a grin excitedly. "We will continue where we left off tomorrow. Until then, practice and continue endurance training on your own time. Dismissed!"

Ten minutes later Hinata and Sakura were leaving the gym together, one arm thrown over the other's shoulder for the support each desperately needed. They wobbled uncoordinatedly over to the exit to return to the lobby, too exhausted to speak to one another or think of anything other than lying down for a few hours—or days. However, as Hinata reached out to open the door, it managed to open itself for a second time that day, revealing a still-energetic Naruto and a smug Sasuke. Hinata gasped in surprise and blushed, baffling Sakura.

"Glad to see you two are still alive," Naruto teased. Sakura, not amused, glared at him while Hinata stayed quiet. Sasuke looked at her disapprovingly with his arms crossed over his chest. Both women tried their best to straighten themselves up to not appear weak in front of their colleagues and the four of them left in the direction of the lobby. Naruto had offered them both a shoulder to lean on multiple times but was courteously refused.

They all collapsed onto the firm couches in the facility lounge, awaiting the rest of the group. The others had been finishing up their training session with Jiraiya with a one-on-one demonstration to assess each officer's ability before being released for the day and Naruto and Sasuke had been the first to go. Sakura lazily looked about the room until her gaze fell to Sasuke. His face revealed zero emotion but she could detect some form of amusement in his eyes. Finding enough energy to speak, she accused him.

"Do you find the suffering of others amusing, Uchiha?" she bit out, still bitter at his earlier attitude towards her. She scanned his face eagerly for a response but he did not take the bait and merely answered with an unintelligible "hn." The stubborn ANBU recruit did not give in and awaited elaboration.

Sasuke resisted blurting out an "I told you so" and crossed his arms. Sakura got the message somehow and angrily looked away, too tired to press the subject. Naruto and Hinata looked between the two confusedly, not registering what happened in the brief unspoken argument. Naruto attempted to break the unsettling silence.

"So Hinata- and Sakura-chan, do you two know about the room assignments?" They shook their heads slightly. "Oh. Neither do I," he trailed off awkwardly. The silence resumed and the four entered their own thoughts for a little while until the rest of the division members started to trickle one-by-one into the lobby.

At last Jiraiya joined everyone and announced that they would be all be staying on floor 5 of unit E-13. This information went through one of Sakura's ears and out the other with little to no effect. In fact, after a series of memories of walking with an arm around someone's shoulders for support, entering one of the many apartment buildings in the HQ, and being given a room number and key, Sakura found herself sprawled upon a still-made bed, head spinning and eyes permanently glued shut. Almost instantaneously, she succumbed into the deepest state of peacefulness she had ever experienced that she thought she'd sink into the center of the Earth.

Just before losing all consciousness, Sakura supposed that she'd like to try dying if it really did feel anything like this.

------------**Chapter End**-----------------------------------------

**Next Chapter:**

_ "What exactly is your problem?" she blurted out angrily. His gaze went to her reflection again as if he were speaking to it instead of the real image. _

_"I'm not the one with any problems," he spat out. _

_"Then what, may I ask, do you think is my problem__?" Sakura was seething. _

**Reviews are good for the soul :3**

**Translations:**

•Kumo - Cloud

If you have any suggestions/complaints/etc. about pacing, grammar, characters, and whatnot then let me know. I haven't written a story in so long (and those I did were awful) and I feel terribly inexperienced with the whole process. I get the feeling that the pace may be slow and boring at the moment, but at the same time a lot of this is somewhat necessary with how I planned things out. The real stuff kicks in soon though, don't worry.

Also, I have yet to decide on a final pairing (assuming I even have a final one) so I'd like to hear your opinion on this as the story progresses since Itachi doesn't even show up for a little while longer :3


	3. Lost & Found

**A Promise for the Birds**  
_Chapter 3_: Lost & Found  
**Words:** 8,471  
**Rating:** T (Language, Violence)  
**Pairing:** Sakura x Sasuke // Sakura x Itachi  
**Disclaimer:** I do not own Naruto on every day of the year except opposite day.   
**A/N:** I don't think I've ever written a chapter with this many words before :O There seems to be a more significant development in the real plot that begins in this chapter so writing the end of it went by very smoothly for me. (And for some reason the character who hardly has anything to do with the story is so much more fun to write :/)

---------------------------------- (Chapter 3) -------------------------------------

Sakura strolled down the streets languidly. The sun was warm, its rays playfully dancing and tickling her bare shoulders. The gentle summer breeze made her light yellow sundress dance about her knees like a floating water lily as the roseate-haired female waved to and greeted each of the figures who she passed by. She saw the old lady Yuugao tending her potted plants outside of her small coffee shop, the friendly neighbor Nagate and his son Nobori on their way to the grocer's, and the meek librarian Itane with her large stack of reading material.

At the end of the street Ino waved to her merrily and Sakura quickened her pace to a short jog to reach her sooner.

"Sakura! It's so good to see you again!" the blonde shouted. Sakura embraced her friend, also glad to see her after so long.

"You haven't been calling me," Ino pouted. "You know, I almost drove all the way to see you in person last week to demand an explanation but work caught up with me and I've been swamped with orders like you wouldn't believe!" Sakura looked at her friend apologetically. The two young women started walking with one another down the next street. There were no cars at this time of day yet and only a few people were starting their morning routines and going to work.

Sakura began to see a few more familiar faces as they continued on in relaxed silence. Naruto and Jiraiya were walking together on the other side of the street and they waved to Sakura who waved back. Sasuke and Shikamaru as well as a few others of the division were casually strolling not far behind. Ino nudged her friend in the arm harmlessly to get her attention.

"That guy's pretty cute," she said slyly, gesturing towards Sasuke and Shikamaru. Sakura was unsure which one she was referring to but before she could say anything Ino began to speak again.

"Oh! Those are gorgeous, look, Sakura! They're on sale too." Sakura's loudmouthed friend hurried ahead in front of her into the growing crowd of people. She tried to hurry and catch up to Ino but the crowd was becoming bigger and bigger and she was beginning to lose sight of her. The faces of people around her were becoming less distinct, their clothes less varied. As she continued into the throng of bustling corporate-dressed and expressionless clones she started to panic. There weren't supposed to be this many people out so early! And they all seemed to be in such a hurry that they trampled and ran into her constantly, leaving her bruised and irritated.

"Sakura." It was almost a whisper, but she heard the voice loud and clear from beside her. The pink-haired girl looked over her shoulder to see Sasuke, who seemed bored and unaffected by the whole situation.

"You don't belong here. Why aren't you leaving?" Sakura was bewildered. What did he mean that she didn't belong? Of course she wasn't supposed to be stuck in the middle of a crowd getting in peoples' paths, but the way he addressed her was so unnerving. Besides, she'd already tried leaving the area to no avail.

"Sakura," came the voice again.

"Get up. It's time to for you to leave."

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"She sleeps like a rock."

"She's worse than you, Naruto."

"We're gonna be late to training if we don't get going. Why not just let her rest for the day? She must be exhausted after Gai-sensei."

"We can't do that, Kiba. She's never been trained before and we leave in two days; she needs to know the basics at least."

Sakura's head was spinning. Or maybe it was the world that was doing the spinning while her body was just too lethargic to catch up with it. She struggled to open her eyes and barely succeeded, the light overhead burning them through the small crack of her eyelids. Three and a half figures stood partially over her, blurred beyond recognition.

As her eyes adjusted the figures took on a more solid form and she could make out the faces of Naruto, Tenten, Kiba, and the top of the fluffy white head of Akamaru. She sat up abruptly and winced, instantly regretting making such a sudden movement.

"Sakura-chan!"

"Shh! Naruto, not so loud. She just woke up," came the reproachful voice of Tenten. Sakura groaned.

"What—what time is it?" She stifled a yawn.

"5:50," said Kiba.

"P.M.?"

"A.M." She groaned again.

"Now that you're awake we'll leave you to get ready. We'll wait for you by the elevators, okay Sakura? Be ready in 15 minutes," ordered the weapons specialist. Sakura nodded slowly and threw her feet over the side of the bed to sit up as the others exited her room.

She could barely remember even arriving in this room the night before. Looking around Sakura took in her surroundings. The bed was still made but a little messy since she had been lying upon it for the night. The room was furnished yet seemingly empty, with a moderately sized wood desk and matching chair, a white dresser and mirror, a nightstand with a lamp, a mini fridge, a narrow closet, and a door that lead to what she assumed would be a bathroom. It had everything a hotel would supply its customers with.

She walked over to the dresser and checked the top drawer for any spare clothes. Surprisingly—or not so much—she found some of her own clothes as well as some underclothing that looked newly purchased. Putting all questions aside for later when coherent thought was plausible, she gathered the most comfortable-looking clothing and headed for the bathroom for a fast shower as she was certain she must have smelled something like a zoo at the moment.

It was 13 minutes later when Sakura emerged from her room fully refreshed but still foggy and exhausted. The three—four—ANBU from earlier as well as most of the other division were waiting by the elevators. Sakura felt a little apologetic for making them all wait for her to ready herself, but at the moment she was far too tired to care much.

As they all traveled back to the facility for round two almost everyone was chatting happily with one another except for a select few—Shikamaru didn't care much for conversation so early in the morning, Sasuke was Sasuke, and Sakura and Hinata were trailing in the back sluggishly.

"Ne, Hinata. Do you think Gai-sensei is seriously going to make us do more of those exercises?" Sakura asked the timid woman fearfully.

"I-I don't know, Sakura-san," she answered honestly. Sakura sighed.

"Today's going to be a long day." Hinata silently agreed.

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"Ever handled a weapon before?" Sakura shook her head and the broad man took a step back to inspect her curiously.

"Doesn't look it either," he added, putting a hand to his chin as if in thought, though his attention seemed to be wavering already. Sakura crossed her still aching arms, a little put off by his forwardness and the fact that he was smoking indoors and on the job no less. The man, better known as Sarutobi Asuma, looked to be around Kakashi's age, with a rather heavy-set build and a rugged outdoorsman look about him. He didn't usually work as an instructor in the facility but for the urgency of the situation at hand and the lack of staff he was currently the weapons specialist for the Ame division's training session.

At the beginning of the lesson Asuma had ordered everyone to remove any weapons on their person to exchange them for new ones and Sakura was surprised to discover that everyone but her seemed to have some form of concealed weaponry, even the timid Hinata. She was mildly disturbed to see Tenten unloading objects ranging from senbon to handguns much like one would expect to see a tiny clown car unload its numerous occupants.

The group then proceeded to get a rundown of the equipment they would be supplied with as well as the basic usage of the latest communications systems in use by ANBU. After a few hours of explanation most of the group was half asleep and bored out of their minds, excluding Lee who seemed eternally energetic and eager. Ibiki and Anko were called out halfway through for a pressing mission call in the interrogation department and Sakura was sure she could see the two older officers let out a breath of relief at being dismissed. The petite woman was, however, very attentive for the duration of the lesson. She found modern technology and the rapid advancement of it over the years increasingly fascinating; she even discovered that she was anxiously anticipating learning how to handle some of the equipment—namely the firearms—in a hands-on process.

Beside Sakura Naruto nervously glanced at his pink-haired teammate, following her calculating gaze towards the table upon which the handguns and rifles were on display in front of Asuma before edging away slightly and remained there until the lecture ended. Asuma removed the cigarette from his mouth and extinguished the butt on the metal plate on the back of his standard ANBU uniform gloves before speaking up again.

"I guess we should wrap up with a few shooting practices then, so you all don't fall asleep during Jiraiya's lessons," he said, scratching the back of his head hesitantly. Sakura could feel the wave of relief that seemed to radiate from the room's occupants. ANBU certainly were patient group of individuals, Sakura thought to herself sarcastically.

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In the facility it was obvious when one was nearing the shooting range. The painfully sharp sound of gunshots ricocheted through the cool-aired hallways like a round of fireworks. Sakura noticed that none of the other ANBU looked even remotely affected by the ear-splitting sounds. At last, the group came to a stop outside a heavy metal door with a thick glass window exhibiting the message "DANGER: Range Boundary. It Is Dangerous To Pass Entry Point When Red Light Is Flashing." Sakura checked the light above the door, which was indeed flashing.

"We'll just work here for about twenty or thirty," Asuma said. "Hyuuga, Haruno, stick by me for today. I'll cover the basic routine here." The two mentioned followed him inside after the rest of the group had already entered. There was a small entry room with several lockers along the walls and a large bullet-proof window across from the door, which revealed a row of riddled targets on the long end of a large room where two other people were already taking aim. Asuma led the rookies to one of the side lockers and handed each a pair of heavy duty ear muffs and glasses for protection as well as a standard ANBU handgun. Sakura stared at the weapon in her hand as if it were a fragile and rare egg. It was surprisingly light.

"The safety lock is currently on so you turn this part to arm it. The blue means it is unlocked, see?" Asuma demonstrated with a gun of his own as the two copied him. Once they were all set and ready the weapons instructor led them into the shooting range and to the last unoccupied booths.

Sakura had to admit that the experience was rather exhilarating. Never would she have imagined herself learning how to handle a gun like she used to see in the movies as a young girl in Kusa; yet here she was, a new recruit to Konoha's most powerful underground defense organization in training before her first big information gathering mission. She briefly wondered what her parents would think once she was able to talk to them. Certainly they would be proud, but would they also worry about her terribly? She didn't wish for that.

Sakura cleared her mind. She wanted to prove her worth— as much to herself as to her colleagues—with her first attempt at handling a gun and so she would need absolute concentration. The target was not too far away, or at least not as far as most of the others' were—Hinata's was further also and she was already boring a few holes into it. Sakura was beginning to feel a bit inferior to her fellow ANBU.

"Just take a deep breath and concentrate," came the heavy voice of Asuma from behind her. Taking his advice, she inhaled and exhaled deeply and raised her weary arms to point dead center of the silhouette of a man with a circle on his chest and squeezed the trigger slowly. Remembering Asuma's earlier instructions, she resisted the urge to shut her eyes and held the gun as steady as possible, preparing for the explosive reaction, which was not as great as she had anticipated to her relief.

"Alright Sakura-chan! You injured him!" came a loud yell by her ear that sounded as clear as it normally did even while wearing the ear muffs. Naruto's congratulations were accompanied by a heavy pat on the back from Asuma. The bullet had penetrated the silhouette's left arm, a few inches to the side and below of the boundary of the red circle. Only a little disappointed that she didn't hit where she had aimed she smiled at her handiwork; at least she hadn't missed completely. A few other division members nearby had also stopped to observe their new colleague's development, some appreciative, some disinterested.

"Very well done for a first time, Haruno. These sort of things take practice and aim takes plenty of experience in order to hit the target correctly. You're right on track so keep trying." She thanked him and put her ear muffs back on and took aim again, this time with more determination.

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Sakura lethargically fanned herself as she lay reclined on one of the facility's lobby couches while she waited for the rest of the division like the day before. It was already 7 P.M. and the group decided earlier to go out for dinner altogether after training was completed. Thankfully, Gai had not been as tough on the girls as last time, only requiring they take a five lap run around the gym before resuming fighting stances and moves. She found that these were not as strenuous as she had originally thought and was starting to enjoy them slightly by the time they had gotten to offensive moves. They had concluded early when Gai had left on business stating that he would be able to make it to the next day's training and that they should again continue practice on their own. Hinata and Sakura pretended not to hear his last suggestion.

Now the two were sitting patiently, making light conversation. Sakura discovered that Hinata had been trained for ANBU since the day she could walk. At the age of 15 she had gotten into a major disagreement with her parents about joining the ranks after graduating and convinced them to allow her to go through with her dreams of going to medical school. Her father was extremely displeased with the idea of the ANBU co-head heiress being involved in such a gutless occupation and pulled her out before she completed her studies. Her family had attributed her with the title of "paper tigress", one which she could not shake off even after finally becoming ANBU.

"What's wrong with that? I think it sounds rather beautiful," Sakura supplied upon hearing of this.

"And that is all it is," came a masculine voice from behind her. Hinata looked on in fright as Sakura turned to see Neji.

"The paper tiger is delicate and beautiful, not meant for fighting—in other words, it is harmless. The only true form of intensity it possesses is that of the Hyuuga esteem." He looked to his cousin condescendingly as she visibly cowered at his words. But before Sakura could defend her friend, the rest of the division, sans Ibiki and Anko who remained on duty for the rest of the day, entered with Kiba and Naruto shouting over one another.

"-could eat a whole hippo right now, I'm so hungry," came the challenging voice of the blonde.

"I'm so hungry I could eat a whole zoo," Kiba responded. The argument continued for another minute and ended with Shikamaru and Tenten restraining both ANBU who were struggling to get at one another after Naruto had mentioned how he could eat a dog. Akamaru was restrained as well.

It was an hour later when the division had at last arrived and was seated in a cozy Korean barbeque restaurant near the apartment building at which they were staying. Sakura attempted to sit next to Sasuke in hopes of discerning whether or not he was upset with her but her plans were thwarted when a hyper Naruto and an eager Lee had sat on either side of the frustrated woman. It wasn't long before they were fighting for her attention like a child trying to impress as one proclaimed his devotion to keeping the "youthful new recruit" out of harm's way and the other offered to take her to Ichiraku every day, his treat. Throughout the meal she couldn't help but catch the masked glares she seemed to be receiving every so often from Sasuke, who ended up sitting across from Naruto. She was all too happy to return them.

At the end of the meal, she yawned and put her chopsticks down, fully satisfied and ready for a warm bath and a good night's sleep. She'd bother with her communicationally-challenged teammate later.

-------------------------Day 3-------------------------------------

The next day went by rather uneventfully. The final morning instructor was a woman also around Kakashi and Asuma's age with striking red eyes and soft brown hair, who went by the name of Yuuhi Kurenai. Like Asuma, she was only an instructor temporarily and was called in for her know-how in everything about traps, espionage, and technological sabotage. Much of what she had to say, however, was a review of material from the past two days, as she had said that her area of expertise was something that had to be learned on the field and in real situations and that she didn't really even know why she was called in for a day at the facility. At the end of her lesson she handed each division member a large packet.

"Keep this information in your possession. Most of it is common knowledge but it shall remain under the category of classified until further notice," the beautiful woman spoke. "In your packet is what we know already of Ame and of their history with Hi no Kuni. Kakashi told me that you are all expected to read through it, front to back, for tomorrow. He also said he'd be by later for transportation arrangements. Make sure you get plenty of rest for the trip tomorrow. Any questions?" Sakura was burning with questions but felt most of them were most likely about things she should already know so she kept quiet.

"Alright then, you are all dismissed. Good luck." With that, Kurenai left the lecture room, leaving the division to go through with their final physical training session.

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"You two have done astonishingly well. You are full of beautiful youthful energy!" Gai gestured animatedly in company with his short congratulatory speech to the conclusion of Hinata and Sakura's conditioning and combat training. He went on further about how successful the two ANBU would be in their mission because youth triumphs over all before dismissing them with tears in his eyes.

They left the gym together and found that this time it was the rest of the division who was waiting in the lobby for them to finish. Even Kakashi was already there, waiting to give out his final instructions before the rest of the allocated leaders took the stand.

"And that's all of them," he cheerfully said. "I'm sure Kurenai has already instructed you all to read those packets of yours so make sure you see to that tonight and during the trip tomorrow if that is applicable to you. All IUs and the DUs of Team 4 will be traveling to the Ame-Hi border city by train while rest of you will be taking different routes directly into Ame under different covers and from different check points. Remember you are not there for infiltration, just casual information gathering-- anything you can from who runs the country to who is their public ally. We just need the basics now before we can even begin planning Phase I, but keep in mind time is key. The sooner we find a way to end this the sooner the war is terminated." Everyone nodded in agreement.

"The details of your transport are in your individual packets, so as I said, read it. Most importantly: good luck everyone. Konoha is counting on you." Sakura looked at the large white folder curiously; she hadn't read it yet but she supposed she would have to get started immediately after getting back to her room.

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"But it would only take me five-- maybe ten minutes to get what I need," Sakura urged. Neji folded his arms imperiously as Shikamaru looked on, bored and uncaring.

"Everything you could possibly need is to be supplied, Haruno. Besides, we cannot afford the risk of having someone who can recognize you see that you're back at your flat; it would be suspicious," the arrogant Hyuuga chided.

"He's right, Sakura. Your landlord's already been contacted about your leave and the council has allotted the funds to keeping your home secure and maintained during your absence. There's nothing left to worry about." Sakura looked at Shikamaru, uncertain with how to refute his claim that there was really nothing necessary about her going back to her home for a few minutes. He was right-- he was always right, unfortunately.

She sat back in her seat and started swirling around the iced tea in her cup out of boredom. With it being so early in the evening everyone had already went to get something to eat and returned to the first floor of their apartment building. On this floor was a peaceful seating area that reminded Sakura of the hospital that her father had worked in with its white-wash walls and sterile-looking seats.

She had lost interest in conversation for the while and decided it was about time she got to looking through her packet. Inside she found a small stack of bound papers, most of which contained information on what she already knew about Ame thanks to her work in the capital. She even recognized some of her own additions to the growing knowledge of Hi's shady neighbor country, including the two pictures of Tsuchi and Mizu officials meeting with Ame higher-ups that she had supplied to the council three days ago.

When she neared the end of the folder's contents Sakura came across a paper addressed only to her, which detailed the proceedings of tomorrow's transport to the border city. She was to arrive at the central ANBU office building at 6 A.M. where she would receive her train tickets. Any extra necessities and personal items were to be brought by her and in minimal storage.

'That sounds easy enough,' she thought, reassured. Maybe her first mission wouldn't be all that bad.

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"Alright! This is going to be so exciting, ne Sakura-chan? It's your first mission!" Naruto prodded the half-awake woman who brushed his hand away dazedly. Team 4 and the other IUs were already situated in one of the train cabins of the extensively branched Hi railway system. Not wanting to appear too suspicious being back in the bustling city of Konoha, the group split up and arrived at the train from different locations. Sakura was vaguely surprised to feel true breeze and see the real sky after being subjected to living underground for three days, despite the fact that its imitations of a natural suburban environment was superbly accurate.

Naruto started bouncing around in the seat adjusting his position continuously like an overexcited toddler, anticipation and eagerness clear on his face.

"Naruto!"

"Enough."

Sakura and Sasuke both spoke at the same time as both were sharing the same seat as the energetic ANBU and were quick to anger by any positive attitude at this time of day. Ibiki, Anko, and Shikamaru sat across from them, each sitting with arms crossed and face dull, also irritated at the blonde's display of energy. Naruto was certainly a horse of another color in this crowd.

After Naruto had quieted down and eventually fell asleep an hour later, obnoxiously leaning on Sakura who had sat in the middle of her teammates, the pink-haired woman was terribly weary and was desperately thinking of something she could do to kill time. Sleeping was out of the question as her neck ached awfully every time she allowed her head to droop and she had already read through her packet a few times—there was only a short while that one could do that before enough was enough. She settled on returning her gaze to the window to watch the clouds like the pineapple man in the row across from her.

She had wanted the window seat herself but Sasuke had beaten her to it and was unwilling to relent. Sakura was certain he'd refuse the seat to his own grand-mother had she been the one to ask. To her further exasperation, she noticed Sasuke's reflection in the window; he had been gazing out of it ever since they had boarded the train and whenever Sakura looked out as well she would see him scowling at her own reflection like he was the only one with window rights. It wasn't before long that Sakura was fed up with it all.

"What exactly is your problem?" she blurted out angrily. His gaze went to her reflection again as if he were speaking to it instead of the real image.

"I'm not the one with any problems," he spat out.

"Then what, may I ask, do you think is my problem?" Sakura was seething.

'The nerve of this man,' she thought.

"Hn."

"You can't even come up with anything credible? I can't imagine what you'd do under pressure while on duty." She scoffed at the thought of the stuck-up Uchiha acting as anyone else but himself when he was supposed to be in a disguise of some sort.

"I can say the same in regards to you," he bitterly supplied.

"What are you getting at?"

"Face it, you're not prepared. Just make sure you don't do something stupid and screw up the mission." Sakura's face was quickly growing red and she fought to keep her voice down in the quiet cabin. The pink-haired ANBU was not known for her level headedness but certainly her scowling colleague must have set a world record in amount of time to push every last one of her buttons. Shikamaru had already woken up and was watching the two with mild interest.

"Are you calling me incompetent, Uchiha?" she snapped. Sasuke shrugged.

"This is an important mission, not some little field trip to the capital. Mess this up and you're not the only one who has to face the consequences." Sakura was sure things were just about to get messy until she was rapidly halted by another voice.

"Relax kid, Kakashi trusts her and so do I. This girl knows her stuff," Ibiki abruptly provided. It was unusual for him or Anko to talk with the others in the division much; Sakura attributed it to the intensely different backgrounds, field of work, and age gap of the two interrogation unit members, but it could have just as easily been the mere oddity that was their personalities. She felt a sense of honor that the battle-scarred man was actually defending her.

"Thank you, Ibiki-san," Sakura said. Sasuke merely "hn"ed again and returned to face his window. And now Sakura was back to square one.

------------------------A few hours later-----------------------------

"Oi! Watch where you're going! Moron." Naruto continued to grumble to himself and crossed his arm with a huff as the golden taxi zipped past the group and back into the sea of pedestrians and traffic. They were walking along a narrow sidewalk on one of the busiest roads of the Ame-Hi border city, heading for the Hi police department's secondary branch headquarters, which was conveniently located only a block from the train station.

Despite the fact that they were fully adorned in civilian wear and equipped with only a small pack of basic necessities, they trudged on like weary soldiers through a confounding jungle thicket from one battle station to another. Perhaps this wasn't too far from the truth after all. The Ame-Hi border city (which had a true name at one point but was forgotten for reasons that could not even be recalled and was now just referred to as Ame-Hi) was a considerably large city like Konoha but was by no means to be considered as affluent or prestigious. The air was heavy with smog, the weather annually drab, and the locals were just about as dreary and coarse as the general atmosphere.

The Ame-Hi Police Department was a stout building and appeared somewhat poorly maintained on the exterior. Sakura discovered that there wasn't much worth talking about indoors either as the Konoha ANBU shuffled in one after the other. The lobby was stuffy and a rather loud hum that filled the room was coming from an AC unit that didn't seem to be doing anything but make noise. A portly middle-aged woman sat at a desk at the end of the small entry and adjusted her glasses on the bridge of her nose as she looked up to see the newcomers.

"You the guys from the capital?" the woman asked, exposing the wad of gum she was not-so-subtly chewing on. Anko nodded and handed her a small form from the confines of her bag which the woman glanced at and put aside for later reading.

"Uchiha-sama is just down the hall and to the right; he shouldn't be too busy right now."

True to her word, the room that the secretary had pointed out was indeed open and a pleasant male voice from within announced that the ANBU were free to come in and to shut the door behind them.

"You're right on time," the Uchiha said, smiling politely. The man appeared affable and easygoing, reclining back in his chair casually and motioning the rest of the group to take the unoccupied seats of the large conference table in front of them. His outwardly appearance was boyish—though Sakura later discovered he was almost to his thirties—and his smile was genuine. Although he seemed laid back he carried such a refined and trimmed air that was innate to all Uchiha that Sakura was almost taken aback by the contrast.

"I see there are a few familiar faces among you." He looked around at each of them in greeting before turning to Sakura. "I'm Uchiha Shisui, director of the AHPD" he said, addressing mainly the rookie of the group. "I apologize for not shaking your hand properly but I'm afraid I was just handling a handful of mission reports." A snort came from Naruto's direction.

"I'd like to welcome you all to our little city and I hope you find the accommodations adequate. I've been informed of recent developments in Konoha and abroad and have been notified that I am to be the only one in this department to receive this intelligence. Unfortunately, the budget's been a bit tight in this sector up here and so our equipment is a tad outdated and again I apologize for any inconvenience…" Ibiki put up his hand in reassurance.

"We are grateful for the arrangements on such a short notice. We only require limited equipment so I assume everything will be well." Shisui nodded and stood up, indicating the conclusion to the short meeting.

"Well then, if you'll follow me right this way…"

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Sakura twirled a pen rapidly between two fingers, slightly agitated as Ibiki and Naruto tested the communications equipment.

"Testing, testing." Naruto poked at the tiny microphone clip-on piece.

"Hold on, it's all static." Ibiki put a hand up to his own headpiece to push it firmly into place.

"How about now?"

"I can't hear the radio over you. Try going into the next room." The blonde got up and exited the stuffy office-turned-war-room as instructed. The other four in the group sat around uselessly, waiting for something to do. Sakura was growing antsy with the idleness, as it allowed for her to reflect on her current situation.

Her earlier confrontation with Sasuke, combined with her dream two nights ago and her general fear of ineptitude, was beginning to disturb her more than she was prepared for. Her three fast-paced days of training felt to her like her school days when she used to cram before her exams, and all the important details she had gathered at the facility were already beginning to spill over the edges of her overflowing short-term memory reservoir. She still had no idea what was going to happen and what she was supposed to be doing. However, her thoughts were instantly interrupted by a shrill ring that consumed the tiny room.

"I meant turn up the goddamn mic, not your voice!" Ibiki roared at the energetic youth who reentered the room shyly.

"Troublesome," Shikamaru muttered.

"At least it's working now. Are we finally ready to get going?" Anko urged impatiently.

"Ah. Naruto and I can begin the preparations," Sasuke spoke up at last. Sakura felt a bit lost.

"Preparations for what?"

"The Dobe and I are going to our destination in Ame for some information retrieval," the goofy blonde grinned, punching Sasuke in the arm.

"Oh… So then we just stay back in the station?" Sakura inquired again. She felt a little relief at the thought.

"Yep. That's what the IUs do at least," said Anko. "If you're up to it and feel it's necessary you can do a bit of snooping around the city for some investigation practice when you're on your breaks. Just be as discreet as possible."

"Hai." That sounded like something she could do. Maybe all she needed was a little bit of practice to soothe her uneasy mind. As the young ANBU's thoughts wandered her two teammates began gathering their supplies and gearing up for their session in Ame. When Sakura had at last snapped out of her trance Naruto and Sasuke were already nearly ready and were currently securing their earpieces while Ibiki helped make sure they were properly concealed.

The two remained in their civilian clothing and carried only minimal gear for defense and communicative purposes. Sasuke had even put on contacts of a shade of green that reminded Sakura of the rolling grassy plains of her home country, as well as an A.H.U. baseball cap that he purchased at a stand near the train station in order to partially veil his Uchiha heritage. To Sakura the two looked like a pair of college students heading out for the weekend. She wished them luck.

"Thanks Sakura-chan," Naruto grinned.

"Hn."

Once the two ANBU had left on their way Sakura collapsed into a nearby office chair. The room was silent and the other three IUs made no move to make it otherwise, all seemingly deep in thought or just bored already. The jade-eyed woman started swiveling around in her chair in uninterestedly while hoping someone would break the silence. Said deed was done with the quiet opening of the door. However, Sakura was disappointed when she had noticed that it was merely Ibiki leaving the room with unknown intent in his otherwise blank expression. Looking around, she had also noticed that Anko was already doing her own thing on one of the department computers, leaving Sakura afraid to disturb the older woman, and Shikamaru had produced a book and had begun reading.

She sighed quietly to herself. She hadn't thought to bring anything to do. Back at home, the pink-haired female would have read when she had the time to herself, most likely with a nice warm cup of chai tea and a blanket to curl up under, even in the summer. Sakura never thought of her past-time as boring but every now and then Ino would bring up the suggestion that she should liven up her life while she was still young; the blonde certainly did expose her childhood friend to the more wild side of life on many an occasion back in the day, though Sakura never opted to go out on these escapades on her own. She sighed again, this time feeling somewhat homesick.

It was only three in the afternoon but Sakura felt like she had been away from the headquarters for days and all she wanted to do was have a long soak in the tub followed by a nice nap afterwards. She leaned back in her seat and closed her eyes; perhaps she could make that last part work out at least.

A furious echo of clicks and taps began the moment Sakura felt unconsciousness consuming her. Irritated, she opened her eyes to examine the source of the racket and remembered that Anko was working at the computer. She supposed the woman was doing something important but that didn't quell her slight annoyance at being interrupted from her close escape from reality. The typing stopped as Anko noticed she had an attentive audience.

"Am I disturbing you?" The older ANBU didn't seem too sympathetic.

"Not at all. I was just thinking." The younger one didn't seem that truthful. Anko shrugged and resumed her work, ignoring her colleague again. Sakura at last decided no good would ever come out of remaining where she was and stood up to leave the room.

If she couldn't have her tea then maybe some coffee would suffice.

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The AHDP was quite the labyrinth to the poor pink-haired ANBU. She had passed hallway after hallway, closed door after closed door, and witnessed not a single soul. It could have been 5 minutes or an hour since she had left Anko and Shikamaru and she would have never known the difference.

Sakura would never admit it even to herself but deep down she was beginning to be slightly wary of the crumbling and smelly building. She nearly jumped at every little creak and thump she heard. She was certain she had heard activity and maybe even some voices here and there but every corner she turned and every doorway she peaked into was dead empty. There was not a soul anywhere.

Unfortunately, she hadn't thought to bring her headset with her and she had long since had her cell phone removed from her person—which she regretfully hadn't noticed until now—and none of the rooms she passed seemed to have a phone in them. She supposed it wouldn't have mattered if they had, however, as she had no idea what number to call. In addition, most rooms seemed to be empty office and conference rooms with little to no furniture and all other rooms were closed and the lights off.

Just when the petite woman was about to lose all hope, an all too familiar and (only for now) very welcoming scent whiffed past her nose invitingly.

Someone was making coffee and they were nearby.

She tried to follow the smell only to realize that she had no idea which way it was coming from. Now desperate to find a way out of her dilemma she closed her eyes to focus on her olfactory senses, blindly groping the air in front of her so she didn't run into any obstacles.

'Geeze, I hope no one sees me like this.'

Apparently fate was bored as well. Without warning Sakura suddenly felt something encircle one of her outstretched wrists firmly. She froze, fearful of what sight she would discover if she were to open her eyes, which remained clenched shut tightly in apprehension. She knew she was being absolutely ridiculous at that point but she felt had felt so lost and out of place, almost like she was in a dream, ever since she had began her first day as ANBU that nothing seemed normal anymore. A light chuckle came from the area directly before her and although it wasn't mocking, Sakura couldn't help but feel rather childish for her actions.

"Aren't you a little old to be playing hide-and-seek?" Sakura could feel the blood rushing to her cheeks and she resisted the urge to hide her face in embarrassment. At last she finally built up enough courage to slowly wedge her eyelids open, taking in the view of the tidy scarlet tie of Uchiha Shisui. So he was taller than her.

Sakura reluctantly tilted her head upwards to look the man in the face, taking in his highly amused façade and humorous glint in his deep onyx eyes, which were so much like Sasuke's and yet so different—more full of life and of the love for it.

"I- I was a bit…"

"Lost?" He smiled gaily. "Not to worry, I'm not sure even I know my way around here entirely, yet, and I've been director here for four years!" Laughter again. Sakura forced a smile. Was that supposed to ease her worries somehow? At last the Uchiha became a bit more serious.

"So what is it that you were looking for, Sakura-san?"

"I was just a bit bored, actually." She trailed off at the end of her sentence, beginning to feel even more foolish.

'I may as well go ahead and ask him if he has some paper and crayons while I'm at it.'

Shisui looked pleased at this bit of news.

"Is that so? It just so happens that I've got some time to kill, myself. Have you ever played Reversi?" She shook her head.

"Come with me, I'll show you my favorite little hideaway in this dreadful prison." Not wanting to refuse his invitation in her desperate need for human contact she obediently followed the stately director, trying to keep pace with his elegant strides through the maze of hallways.

Moments later the two approached a glass door at the end of the hallway through which the late afternoon sun mischievously shone. The passage, to Sakura's great amazement, led to a small courtyard that was surrounded on all four sides by the squat compound walls, each adorned with a pattern of faded red and white fans, the highly respected Uchiha emblem. The courtyard was as faulted and worn down as the rest of the confounded building but its aged appearance took a more regal and graceful direction with its moss-blanketed stone benches, leafy carpet, and ancient oaks that rustled their leaves pleasantly in the gentle breeze. Sakura thought the sight was quite beautiful.

Shisui continued on into the center of the square, headed towards a small stone table and bench beneath the eldest-looking tree. As Sakura neared the table the director was already removing small black and white pebbles from an indention on the edge of the structure.

"This is actually a Go board," he spoke, "but over the years most of the pieces have gone missing somehow or another and now we just have enough left to play Reversi—not that I mind of course. Sometimes it's more fun to play a less mentally-demanding game than that old-geezer's sport." He placed four pieces into the center four tiles of the sectioned table in a checkerboard fashion.

"The goal of the game is to have the most pieces on the board. When you have two pieces of your own color surround those of the other color, the ones you surrounded are flipped to the other side and become your color as well. So basically it is a surround and conquer game, fighting over the same pieces until we cannot put down any more of our own onto the board." He paused to let the ANBU absorb the information.

"So if I take over a row of your pieces you can still reclaim them if you surround mine?" she asked.

"That is correct. If you leave any space around your piece then it is fair game. Here's a little bit of advice, Sakura." He leaned in closer as he said this as if about to reveal something confidential.

"Do not leave your back unguarded or else you risk losing some of your pieces. Even if there is not much else around you at the time, keep in mind that eventually that space will be filled by the end of the game. No piece is safe—that is, except corner pieces. With the corners, obviously you cannot be taken over; you're guarded on both sides and hold the upper hand." He leaned back again and folded his hands while Sakura examined the board to picture what he had detailed for her.

"Alright, I think I got it," she said.

"Very well. I won't go easy on you though." She nodded.

"I will be white."

"Which color goes first?" asked Sakura.

"White." He reached out to make a move.

"H-hey, wait a minute! Shouldn't the beginner go first?" she argued.

"But you're black," Shisui replied as if it were the most obvious fact in the world. He picked up a piece and placed it down on its white side behind one of the black pieces and flipped over Sakura's conquered one. She crossed her arms but didn't continue the argument.

"Your move," he said.

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"You're getting pretty good at this." Sakura began to pick up the pieces of the latest round to prepare the board for the next and Shisui helped her collect them. The two had been playing for an hour and a half and both were tied in number of games won after Sakura had at last gotten the hang of things.

"I learned from the best, I guess," she said in a joking manner. Shisui laughed at this but said nothing and finished clearing off the board.

"Time for the final round: the tie breaker. You wouldn't go too hard on your old sensei now, would you? I'd be ashamed to lose to someone who just began playing if they weren't as bright as you."

"Tch, that's not going to work on me, Shisui-san. We're going to play this fair and square. Besides, you were the one who first said you weren't going easy on me," she taunted.

"Ah, you got me there." He made the first move. After a few more maneuvers Shisui broke the peaceful silence again.

"You know, it's been so long since anyone's played against me out here. I never knew how much I missed it until now." He looked thoughtful for a moment.

"Shisui-san," Sakura began.

"You can just call me Shisui, Sakura."

"Shisui," she corrected. "Why is this place so empty? I always thought the police department in a city this big would be more…"

"Alive?" he finished her thoughts again. She nodded. He smiled almost bitterly.

"This war has been hard on everyone. Talk in the city is always centered on it and people fear for their way of life, their jobs, everything. Not to mention our rather shady neighbors seem to be a little more active lately than usual," he added quietly.

"We've had a lot of people resign lately. It's difficult to tell why exactly, but I'm sure a combination of greatly reduced funding over the past two years and intimidation on our borders may have something to do with it." Sakura looked at him solemnly.

"You haven't contacted Konoha about the situation here?" she asked.

"Oh I have, trust me on that one. I'm confident something will be done about it once Fugaku hands the torch over to his son. Don't get me wrong—Fugaku-san is a great man and is very understanding, but he also believes in gradualism when it comes to changes. It can be very hard on those of us who depend on change, you see." She nodded, knowingly.

"So Sasuke will be heading the Konoha Central Police Department soon? Isn't he a bit young still?"

"Actually it's Itachi who is next in line, Sasuke's older brother." Sakura smacked her forehead mentally. Of course! She had forgotten about her cold teammate's sibling. Uchiha Itachi was known as an enigma to most people she encountered in the capital. She had never seen him in person herself but what she had gathered of the mysterious Uchiha heir was that he was very reserved, highly respected and powerful at his young age, and recognized as an all-around prodigy. Most people spoke of him appraisingly or bordering fearfully.

"I see. So Itachi-san is the opposite of his father when it comes to change?" Shisui shook his head.

"Not quite. As it happens, Itachi and I are best buds, so to speak," he smiled proudly. Sakura looked at him in surprise. Certainly the man who trumped Sasuke for title of human ice block, or so she heard, could not possibly be close friends with such a light-hearted and carefree individual. Then again, somehow Sasuke and Naruto were friends. She supposed it could work, although the pink-haired woman knew she would never comprehend the mechanics of such a phenomenon.

"Besides, I've already spoken to him on numerous occasions about the circumstances here and he's agreed to do what needs to be done once he assumes the role."

"I'm glad to hear it," Sakura said truthfully. Shisui's pleasant smile turned conniving as he made another move.

"Oh! Looks like I've won this one." She looked at the board in shock. Indeed, Shisui had used Sakura's carelessly placed piece to put one of his own into the final corner, claiming three out of four as his own and securing his victory in the process.

"Make sure you don't let me use you like that next time—I thought we were going to play this fair and square," he poked fun at her. Sakura merely crossed her arms and glared good-humoredly back at the Uchiha.

"I'll keep that in mind for later, Shisui-sensei," the young ANBU grinned.

**------------Chapter End-----------------------------------------  
Next Chapter: **

_Sakura froze. Her mind had still been processing the sudden echo of a gunshot that sounded far too near for comfort when her body had already received and responded to the blast mere inches from her face. _

_"I said _don't move_, god dammit!" Footsteps approached her and she cringed inwardly when one of the heavy soles of the man's shoes crushed the fingers of the hand that wasn't in her bag, causing her to restrain a quiet whimper. _

**Another note: **

This will be my last update of this particular story unless someone asks me to continue. Otherwise I'll still be writing it as I please but I won't update it until I have completed all or a substantial amount of it and can then go back and do a major edit. I'm not too pleased with how it's starting off so slowly and (I think) blandly but since it's my first time writing in five years I'll forgive myself just a little bit xP I think by allowing myself the time to gain some more writing experience I can truly enhance this story as I'm still attached to the general plot and its intricate twists that I haven't even got to yet xD

So, there you go. No response/reviews means to me that I have failed in my mission to entertain and will thus withdraw until I feel that I am capable of doing so again.

Thank you for reading.**  
**


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